Hiding in Plain Sight
by hearttorn
Summary: I'm done with nearly dying." - Sookie Stackhouse
1. Chapter 1

I shut the door behind me and locked it, then leaned against the door and heaved a sigh of accomplishment. I never thought I'd actually pull this off. This apartment is tiny, but it's not in Louisiana and it's mine. 

Flopping into my Gran's old chair, I thought back on all it took to pull this off. It took me three months, but I did it. The idea came to me when I was healing from being kidnapped by thosedamnfairies (all one word in my head). When you barely have the energy to walk across the room to the bathroom, you have a lot of time to think. And think I did. And plan. And plot. 

I've learned a lot in the two years I've known Eric Northman. I've learned something about how to plan for every eventuality, every outcome. Think, think some more, and think again. Plus, I've learned a little about how his mind works. He may think he knows everything about me, but I know a thing or two about him, too.

I knew from Amelia's mind (she's a loud broadcaster; it's like having the radio on, all the time) that she was planning on going back to New Orleans after Tray died. I knew she blamed me, even though she tried hard not to. Hell, I didn't blame her – I blamed myself, too. If he hadn't been guarding me, he never would've been killed by thosedamnfairies either. I knew that once she was gone, I had to move fast. When she finally 'fessed up, it was actually a relief.

The first thing I did was get one of those cheap, non-traceable cell phones. I placed an ad in the Shreveport paper for an estate sale – days _only_ (take that Vampire Bill, try to spy on me now) – and list most of the contents of my house, with the new cell phone number as the contact. I took all the items I wanted to keep and locked them in a spare bedroom. I also listed one used Malibu for sale as well, cash only, with the buyer able to take possession on my moving day. 

Slowly, item-by-item, I watched my family's history go out the door. Not the really special things, I kept those. I had a lot of moments where I thought I couldn't do it, couldn't sell these things, but then I would hear my Gran's sweet voice in my head, telling me, "Sookie, they're just things. Your family is in your heart. You need to do this to change your life. You'll be back some day."

I worked as many shifts as I could get at Merlotte's. I told Sam, my boss, it was because I had been off for a while and needed money to pay some medical bills, and bless his heart he believed me. I felt bad lying to him, but I knew he'd try to stop me if he knew. For all that Sam wanted me away from vampires, he didn't want me away from him or Bon Temps. 

Working so much gave me a perfect excuse not to see Eric, too. I told him I was still tired and recuperating (which was true) and worn out from working so much. I was too exhausted to drive to Shreveport and just couldn't deal with company. He must've really felt guilty about not coming to rescue me from thosedamnfairies, because he didn't push too hard, and he accepted my excuses. 

He did, however, send Bill to check up on me (surprise, surprise). I wouldn't let him in when he came to the door – just cracked it open and held my bathrobe tight around me like I was being modest. I knew he knew something was up, though, so I had to think fast. I said the one thing I knew could guarantee he couldn't just come in and start snooping under the guise of "checking on me" for Eric.

"Listen, Bill… you know that Eric and I are bonded and pledged now. Well, I just don't feel right about you being able to come in when I'm, well, _his_. So, I'm sorry, but I rescind your invitation."

I could tell by the look on his face that I had hurt him, deeply. "Sweetheart, you know I would never do anything to make you uncomfortable. I love you, you know that."

"Well, the thing is Bill, I just feel like Eric needs to be the only vampire who can come in. So, I'm sorry, but that's how it is." I shut the door quickly so I didn't have to see the hurt puppy look on his face, before he managed to settle it back into its usual inscrutable, calm expression.

I waited. One minute, two, three, four… before I got to five, the phone rang. I looked at the caller ID even though I knew who it was – Eric. 

"Lover, I hear you've taken an unusual step in our relationship. One, I admit, even I didn't see coming. You continually surprise me."

"Well, Eric, you're always saying how I'm yours, so I just thought it would be a good idea if Bill couldn't come in anymore. I thought that might make you happy."

"It makes me very happy, dear one, that you've announced that you are mine to Bill. I knew it was only a matter of time. But given your history, don't you think it's wise that Compton should be able to come in, if something should happen? You are a – what did Pam call you? – danger magnet." He chuckled.

"Eric, are you kidding me? You've spent months, no – over a _year_ – trying to get me to get Bill out of my life, and the second I do it, you want me to invite him back?" I had him wrong-footed (for once) and he knew it. But as always, he switched gears quickly.

Soothingly, he said, "Lover, you're getting upset. You still aren't well. Calm down, and we'll discuss this some other time."

HA! I finally won an argument with him! The downside was, I knew that with Bill somewhat out of the picture, that meant Eric might be around more – at least outside, keeping an eye on me. So I went around the house, closing all the curtains and blinds. I made sure all the windows were locked, too, so no sneaking in that way.

Eventually, everything I wanted to sell had been sold, and everything I wanted to take was packed. And, most importantly, I had managed to keep Eric, Bill and Sam from knowing anything was going on. I chose what I felt was a truly fitting day to leave – April 1, April Fools Day. It was a hidden message to all the men who tried to control my life that, for once, I wasn't the fool here. 

I arranged for a U-Haul truck that day, and once I picked it up, the buyer of my car came and we completed the transaction. I was a little bit richer and a little bit freer. I loaded all my items into the small truck myself, as I wasn't taking much, and locked the doors to my family home for what I hoped wouldn't be the last time. I prayed for a moment that I would be able to come back some day. I quietly rescinded the invitation of every vampire I knew, then I pinned a note on the door.

_My life is too short to live like this, and go through what I have again. I've gone to find a new one. I know you'll try to find me, but I'm asking you to let me go. I'm done with nearly dying._

I tucked my hair up into a ball cap and put on giant sunglasses. Then I put on a sweatshirt and pulled the hood up just to be on the safe side. I wanted to try to sneak out of Bon Temps without anyone recognizing me driving a moving truck. I got in the truck, started it up with a rumble, and hit the road headed for my new life.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Standard disclaimer yada yada: I don't own any of the SVM characters. I wish I owned Alexander Skarsgard, though. LOL_**

**_A/N: I've gotten a lot of reviews about "the bond" so I thought I would clarify – for this story, I'm sticking to the CH version of the bond. Meaning, Sookie gets calming feelings around Eric and they can sense each other. A lot of fanfic has them "sending" emotions to each other through the bond, feeling each other's emotions, and, I dunno, probably sending interoffice mail through the darn thing. But for this story I'm keeping it simple and canon. Over and out - HT_**

Hours later, I pulled into Oklahoma City in the dark. I found a Super 8 motel off the highway that seemed safe, so I decided to stay there for the night. I grabbed a newspaper and started looking.

I would need a job, somewhere to live, and a car. And I needed these things fairly quickly. I been quietly removing sums of money from my bank account for a while now, and I stopped at an ATM outside of Bon Temps to get the last of it, but I didn't have a huge amount. My salary and tips, the last of the money from Rhodes, and the money I had gotten from the estate sale and my car. So I couldn't live in a motel forever.

First – job. I wanted to do something other than waitressing, although I would fall back on that if I had to, so I looked carefully at all the ads. Running my finger down the columns of type, I spotted one that interested me – library assistant. I loved books, I loved reading, and I was in and out of the library in Bon Temps on a weekly basis. I decided this would be my first place to apply.

Next – place to live. Well, that kind of depended on where I got a job, so I held off on that one for a while. I did check out the ads to try to get familiar with the various neighborhoods in the city, though, and prices.

Finally – a car. I remembered seeing a dealership within walking distance of the motel. First thing tomorrow morning, I was going to head over there.

Satisfied with my progress, I ate a sandwich from the bag I had packed, polished off an apple, and then fell fast asleep.

* * *

The next morning I awoke with a sense of purpose. I was in a new city – I was going to live in a city for the first time – and I had a plan. I quickly showered, dressed, ate a banana from my snack bag, and headed to the car dealership.

It was a good-sized lot, with a wide variety of used cars. I wandered around, a little unsure. I made my way up to the office and in just a moment, an older gentleman with neatly ironed jeans, a button up shirt and a large belt buckle made his way over to me.

"Hello ma'am, I'm Jim. Can I help you find a car today?"

I took a quick listen in his head to see if he was someone I wanted to deal with. Surprisingly, I found him to be completely honest. He was thinking I was a lovely young woman, but nothing inappropriate. He was thinking of his wife and how her hair was my color when they married. I decided I could trust him.

"Jim, my name is Sookie Stackhouse. I just moved here and I need a car. I need something reliable, but… to be honest with you, I'm starting a new life here. I had a Malibu before, but I think I want something a little jazzier this time. I'm not too particular, just so long as I won't have any mechanical problems with it."

"Pleased to meet you, Sookie. Let me show you the most reliable cars we've got." He led me around to a Nissan, a Volvo, a Saab. Nothing was really catching my eye.

"I don't think any of these are it, Jim. Is there anything else?"

"Well, actually, we just got one in yesterday that might suit you. It's like new, it was owned by a man who bought it for his daughter and kept it for her until she turned 16. He only drove it a little to keep it in good shape until she was ready to drive it. She only had it a few months before he took it away and sold it because she kept getting speeding tickets. We haven't even had a chance to clean it yet, but our mechanic looked it over and said it's pretty much like it was when it came out off the assembly line. Let me go get it." He headed off to the back of the lot.

Soon, a pale yellow Volkswagen Beetle whipped in front of me. I loved it from the second I set eyes on it. It reminded me of the sun and everything I wanted my life to be from now on. Jim could tell from the look on my face that I like it, so he just smiled and said, "Let's go for a test drive."

For such a small car, that thing could _move_! Jim explained how, when I hit a certain speed, the back spoiler would come out to provide extra aerodynamics. I didn't care so much about that as I loved how it handled, how surprisingly roomy it was, and I especially loved the little vase on the dash. I could easily see myself keeping a daisy in there. It even had a sunroof! Before I knew it, I had bought myself a car.

* * *

I hopped in my new Beetle, opened the sunroof and hit the road in search of food. I found a small restaurant and got myself some lunch, then headed back to the motel to change into nicer clothes to go apply for jobs. I put on a nice dress, some modest heels, and grabbed the map of Oklahoma City I had nabbed at the restaurant. I figured out how to get where I was going and headed downtown.

The downtown library in Oklahoma City was an impressive and beautiful building. Made of steel and glass, it was entirely windows and stretched almost a city block. It gave me a happy feeling to see people inside, browsing for books and reading quietly. I imagined that the level of mind noise I got would be less in a library, since people were concentrating on reading, and it would be easier to keep my shields up. Plus, architecturally, it was pretty much the anti-vampire building. This place was made for the sun. I loved it on sight.

I went in and found the main information desk. I was directed to the correct office for job applicants and made my way there. I took a seat in a hard plastic chair, the kind that they used to have in schools, and began filling out my application. I concentrated hard on my answers, wanting to fill it out as perfectly as possible. When I finished, I handed it in to the non-descript lady behind the desk with apprehension. She glanced at it and picked up the phone. I was almost out the door when I heard it.

"Miss? Come back!"

"Ma'am?" I was raised to be polite.

"Can you do an interview right now?"

"Now? Um, sure." I didn't have anything else to do and I sure wanted that job.

"Follow me." She led me down a narrow hallway to a small office, crowded with papers, notebooks and Post-It notes stuck everywhere. A very harassed-looking woman sat behind the desk.

"Miss Stackhouse?" the harassed lady asked.

"Please, call me Sookie." I gave her my best, non-crazy smile.

"Alright then, Sookie, I'm Janice Farmer. Call me Janice. Please, have a seat." She smiled, and suddenly she looked less harassed, and more vibrant. I instantly relaxed about fifteen degrees.

"Alrighty." I sat in another hard plastic chair.

"Sookie, tell me why you want this job." Janice leaned back in her chair and looked at me expectantly.

"Um… well, ma'am, I love books. I've loved them since I was a little girl. My parents died when I was small, and books were my haven after that. I love to read about just about anything, really. I've always loved to go to the library and I always found a sense of peace there. To be completely honest with you, I just moved here from Louisiana yesterday. I have all my belongings in a U-Haul truck, except for the car I just bought two hours ago. I'm staying in a motel until I can find an apartment. I… well, I'm starting a whole new life here. I was a waitress in Louisiana at a small bar and grill for five years. But I only worked there because I thought that's all I could do. Now, I'd like to start over and make my life what I _want_ it to be, not just what it was." I was almost breathless when I finished my speech.

"Are you a fast learner?" Janice asked.

"Yes ma'am, I've been in a lot of situations where you have to think pretty fast and catch on pretty quick, and I made it out alive so I would say I am." Janice laughed, and I smiled, thinking little did she know how truthful that statement was.

"Sookie, we need someone who is a fast learner, can start immediately, and who really loves books. There's no use working in a library if you don't love to read – you can't recommend books to people, or steer them in the right direction. This job is just an entry-level job, but it pays pretty well and it has decent benefits. If you're a good employee, there's always a chance you could move up to something else as well. I'm guessing since you were a waitress, you know how difficult working with the public can be. We need someone who is always polite and friendly and can keep their cool. Can you do that?"

"Oh, that's no problem!" I laughed. "I've been handling drunks for the past five years, and rude is something I know all too well. I have a really good game face."

"Excellent. Well, Sookie, I think you might be just the fit we need for this position. Can you start tomorrow?"

"Absolutely! And thank you so much for giving me an opportunity." I beamed at her. My smile was so big, it nearly split my face in two.

"You're welcome. Now, follow me and we'll get all the paperwork taken care of to get you ready to go for tomorrow." Janice smiled back and led the way out of her office.

* * *

A few hours later, I was all set to start work for the Metropolitan Library System. I had an ID badge with my picture and name on it, tons of paperwork informing me of my new benefits (I finally had health insurance - although I hoped I wouldn't need it so much anymore.), a parking pass, and a salary that was quite a bit higher than what I made at Merlottes. I was thrilled. My new life was shaping up quite nicely.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and added me to their Fav Stories list! It really motivates me to keep writing. I've gotten some requests for an Eric Point of View and even a Pam, so ask and ye shall receive! Pam's will be coming later. Italics indicate Eric's thoughts, rather than his narration.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except a cranky cat. You can take her if you want her! :P**

EPOV

I rose on the morning of April 1 and noticed immediately that something is wrong. The quiet hum that is Sookie's mortal life, the hum that keeps me company throughout my nights, is lessened. It's there, but it's very, very faint.

_This means she was either far away or very, very injured. _

My first instinct, unusual for me, was to panic. The last time I felt her like this, she was nearly dead from the fairies attacking her.

_Failed her last time. Can't fail her again. Have to think. OK. Concentrate. _

My first line of defense was to call her cell. She didn't answer. Ok, next step, as much as I hate to take it, is Compton.

"Compton, it's Eric. I need you to go to Sookie's house and check on her for me. Right now."

"Eric, what's going on? Is Sookie OK?"

"Compton, if you value your immortal life and do not want to meet your final death, quit wasting time and GO!" I fairly roared the last part and hung up.

_OK, if she's taken or injured, I will need weapons. Who knows WHAT has her this time?_

I went to my living room and grabbed the sword that hung on the wall. It was quite old, but I kept it very, very sharp – particularly in the last few months. It was made of iron and therefore deadly to fairies. It would work against anyone, of course, but you can never be too prepared for any eventuality, I've found.

I had just finished removing it from the wall when the phone rang and I snatched it.

"Northman here."

"Eric, it's Bill. I… I think you need to get to Sookie's house, as soon as you can. Eric…? Hello?"

I was out the door before the phone hit the floor.

* * *

I flew to her house; faster than driving. The heavy iron sword strapped to my back slowed me down some, but I pushed myself to go as fast as possible. Still, it took me about half the time of driving, and while flying I had had a chance to get myself under control. I landed in Sookie's front yard to see Compton sitting on her front porch steps, a piece of paper in hand.

"Tell me," I demanded. He wordlessly handed me the sheet of paper. I looked at it, but for a moment I couldn't make sense of the words. I recognized Sookie's loopy, almost schoolgirl handwriting, with circles over the i's. Slowly the letters began to form words, and the words to take shape. I still had to read it twice before the words took on meaning.

"My life is too short to live like this, and go through what I have again. I've gone to find a new one. I know you'll try to find me, but I'm asking you to let me go. I'm done with nearly dying."

_Gone? How can she be gone? She just… she just **left**__? But we're bonded and pledged. That's final, forever, eternal. I have to find her, I have to make her understand. She never did understand what that meant to me, what it _**_means_**_ to me. She's my… my wife. She can't leave; how could she leave what we had? Min Alskara, why? Well, I'll just find her. She's _**_mine_**_ and I do not lose what is mine. _

I slowly realized Compton was still sitting on the porch, his dark eyes watching my face and all my reactions cross it. On his own face was something similar to what I felt, a look that was bereft, wretched. I caught his eye and we both slipped our usual smooth expressions back on.

"What are you going to do?" he asked quietly, eyes never leaving my face.

"I'm going to go find her and get her back." I stated confidently.

"I don't think that's such a good idea, Eric. She left here of her own free will, she must've had a good reason. You… you don't know how hard the last few months have been on her. You haven't been here."

"She never _wanted_ me to be here. There was always a reason – too tired, too busy, working for the damn shifter. I would've been here if she had asked."

"Her not wanting you around has never stopped you before, Eric," he replied, eyes flashing. "You _should_ have been here. I couldn't help her very much, I was still recovering from the silver poisoning. But I heard things, from people around town. Her roommate would come to see me occasionally. It was bad. Very, very bad."

" Compton, I will thank you not to tell me how to deal with _my_ wife," I yelled, and was on him in a second. I grabbed him by the shirt and threw him bodily against a tree. It wasn't worth the effort, though – his reflexes were slowed from the remaining silver in his system and it wasn't a fair match to begin with, anyway. "Now, I am going to go in and see if I can find any useful information. You can either help me look or go home."

He picked himself up off the ground beneath the tree, brushed himself off with as much dignity as any king, and followed me onto the porch.

"Do you have a key?" he asked quietly.

"No, why – do **_you_**?"

"No, but Sam does. She gave him one when she was out of town once, so he could get her mail and check on the place. I'm sure she mentioned recently that he still had it."

I grabbed my phone and pulled up the number for the shifter's bar. He answered on the second ring.

"Shifter, it's Eric. I need you to bring Sookie's spare key to her house immediately." I snapped my phone shut before he could argue. I sat on the porch swing to wait. Compton took his place back on the steps. Within a few minutes, we could hear the shifter's truck come roaring down the lane to Sookie's house. He was out the door before the car had even fully stopped moving.

"Eric, what the hell is going on? Is Sookie OK? And for the record, you can't just summon me – I'm not one of your vampires." I ignored him and took the key from his hand. From behind me, I heard Compton explaining the situation.

I unlocked the door and tried to step into my lover's house. But… I literally couldn't. I could feel Compton try to push past me, but he was stalled at the threshold as well. I cleared my throat.

"It seems that my lover has rescinded our invitations. _Sam_," I practically choked on the word, "_you _go in and see what you can find out. Try to pick up any scents other than hers." In this instance, at least, having someone who could turn into a dog and track scents was a useful tool to have.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Eric," he said as he stepped into the house. "She wasn't taken. She left." Behind him, as the door swung wide, I could see the missing furniture, their shapes outlined on the old rug. Darker spots on the walls indicated pictures long hung and now removed. The reality of it hit me like a ton weight.

_She's been planning this for months. She knew she was going to leave me, and I… I knew nothing._


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So, the Viking won't shut up. I had planned to do another Sookie chapter, but he's in my head, roaring at me that he wasn't done yet in the last chapter. Ergo, as we all know the Viking gets whatever he wants, here's another EPOV.**

**Disclaimer: blah, blah, blah...**

Once the shifter was inside, he invited Compton and I in, and I was simply stunned. Furniture was missing, the rugs were gone, and the entire house had the air of one that had been boarded up for a long absence. This was not any hurried dash out of town, this was a major life change. One that took some time to organize and implement. 

I wandered through the now-empty house, my eyes taking in all the little things, now missing, that I previously took for granted. Simply part of the scenery. 

I could never imagine Sookie leaving this house voluntarily. I'd spent a great deal of time and energy planning how to get her to leave, but I always thought it would require all my considerable skill at both negotiation and lovemaking to convince her. 

I wandered down the hall to her bedroom. It hit me as soon as I opened the door - she left her bed. Her _bed_. The bed where we had made love and fought and made love again, hours upon hours, nights and nights of it, sat stripped and bare in the room. To me, that bed was the little epicenter of my universe, where everything was safe and right, even when I was cursed and could not remember anything else. That bed was where everything in my long life made sense because she was in it, and we were as connected as two beings could be, and I had her all to myself. And she _left_ it. _Fuck_.

Rage threatened to overwhelm me, swirled in my brain until all I saw was red. I felt like she had reached into  my chest, grabbed my undead heart, stomped it and thrown it back at me. 

_It wasn't all me. I _**_know_**_ her. I know she felt what I felt, what I feel. So why...?_

I had to get my controlled, organized brain back in place. What did I know so far? I mentally ran down what little information I had.

Fact: I know she is alive, but not close.

Fact: I know she planned this. 

Fact: I know she had been avoiding me (_Fuck! how did I not see she was _**_avoiding_**_ me?_) for some time in order to plan this. Think back. How long...? 

_Since the fairies_, my brain sneered at me. My rage came swirling back, until I realized that:

Fact: neither Compton nor the shifter knew anything about this either. That actually made me feel slightly better, to know that her closest neighbor and her boss were just as taken aback as I was. There was only one other person who might have information, but I doubted she would be too forthcoming. I snapped open my phone and dialed.

"Fangtasia, the bar with a bite," came my child's bored voice.

"Pam, get me the number for the witch."

**A/N: Poor Eric! I actually teared up a little writing about him thinking about Sookie's bed.**


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N Apologies for taking so long for the next chapter – I had 2 completed, and my computer crashed and erased them!! Plus an entire Christmas story. _L_ Anyway, now back to Sookie._

I awoke the next day excited and with nervous butterflies in my stomach. I'd never had any jobs but waitressing, really, so this was a big day for me – starting a new job in a completely new field.

I kicked on the coffee maker in the room and sadly surveyed my "business casual" clothes. Most of my clothes that were nicer, meaning not jeans and t-shirts, had been destroyed one way or another by working with vampires. The available options to wear to work were slim. I dug through my suitcase and settled on a pair of slacks and blouse I had bought for Dallas. I suppose I should be thankful Bill had me buy them, but thinking about all the clothes I had lost kept me out of a thankful mood, towards vampires at least.

Thinking about Dallas made me think about Eric. The bullet he took for me really started this whole mess. Everything in my life changed after I had his blood the first time. I smiled a little, thinking about how devious he was telling me he couldn't heal unless I sucked the bullet out. Of course, he laid one of the best kisses in history on me, too, but I shook that thought away.

With new resolve, I stomped towards the bathroom. I showered (carefully _not_ thinking about another shower I had enjoyed, with Eric), and carefully scrubbed, shaved and exfoliated. I lotioned all over, and carefully applied my makeup and put my hair up in a messy knot. Simple jewelry and sensible pumps completed my look for the day.

I hopped in my sunny yellow Beetle and headed downtown to the library. I navigated to the correct parking garage, clipped on my new ID badge and headed inside. I made my way back to Janice's office, and she took me to "my" area – fiction. I was introduced to a smiling woman named Lori who looked to be in her early 40s. She explained that she was the fiction librarian and would be my new boss.

Within minutes, I was swept into the world of the library. There was so much I didn't know! I didn't know you had to have a master's degree to be a librarian, that you alphabetized by title, but disregarding "A," "An," or "The," and the Dewey decimal system was going to take me a while to master.

Seeing my stunned look, Lori laughed. "Sookie, relax – you don't have to learn everything today. It takes time. I think I've given you brain overload for now, so let's kick back for a minute and tell me about yourself."

I sank gratefully into a chair behind the fiction desk. "Well, there's not much to tell. I'm from Louisiana, and I just moved here to start a new life."

"Ooh, that sounds exciting! My teenagers and my husband make me want to start a new life at least once a week!" Lori laughed. "So, are you divorced, single, other?" she smiled.

"Single. Not married, no kids. Just… hasn't happened for me yet." I shrugged.

"Well, don't worry. You're young and you're a pretty girl – I know some man will snatch you up!"

"I don't know about that – I haven't been so good at relationships so far. Or at least, I'm not good at picking men." I grimaced.

"Oh, boyfriend problems back home?" Lori looked at me sympathetically.

"You could say that. My most recent boyfriend (_Could you call a 1,000 year old vampire a boyfriend?_ I thought) – well, he had a complicated job, a powerful position, and it took up a lot of his time and was sort of… well, it tended to suck all of us into it." I didn't want to say too much.

"It can be difficult being with someone with a prominent position. My husband is a vice president with his company, and it's more than a full time job. It always seems to fall to the women to make it work, doesn't it?"

I smiled. "You could say that."

Lori stood. "Well, let's take a stroll around you new section and I'll fill you in on the job a little more. I want to take you to lunch today, my treat, and we can chat some more then and get to know each other better." She really had an open, friendly smile.

"Sounds great." _All in all_, I thought, _my first day was going well._


	6. Chapter 6

Pam POV

I am most displeased. My telepathic friend has, as the humans say, decided to pull a runner. Up and disappeared, leaving no clue as to her whereabouts. My Master is most distressed. Of course, he is trying to keep up appearances, but I know him so well, I can always tell. He's been on the phone non-stop since she disappeared, calling in favors and everyone he can think of to locate her.

I have located Amelia in New Orleans. As I suspected, she knows nothing of Sookie's departure. It's been difficult for her and Sookie since Amelia's Were died. She's been occupied by trying to rebuild her life in New Orleans. I didn't like how sad she still sounded on the phone. I almost didn't want to give her number to Eric, as I knew he'd probably be abrupt and upset her further, but as I was bid to produce it, I really had no choice.

I went to Eric's office. Piles of paper, maps, and scribbled notes covered the top of his desk. "Master, I have located Amelia in New Orleans. She has heard nothing from Sookie."

He grabbed the slip of paper with her number from my hand and immediately began dialing. "Good work, Pam."

"Master, you might want to be a bit gentle…" I started, but he was already speaking.

"Witch, this is Northman. I understand Pam informed you of Sookie's disappearance." His voice was a tight as I had ever heard it. With my superior hearing, I could easily hear Amelia's side of the conversation.

"It doesn't sound like she's disappeared, _Vampire_, so much as moved." I hid a smile to hear Amelia's spunk coming back.

Eric ignored the barb. "When did you last speak to her? Did she mention going anywhere? Even as a road-trip? Someplace she might like to see, visit even?" He fired out the questions.

"Well, like I already told Pam, I spoke to her about six weeks ago. She didn't mention anything about going anywhere. She just said she was working a lot, and was tired. I can't remember Sookie ever mentioning moving anywhere. In fact, I can't imagine her moving at all. What did you do?"

My Master was clearly stunned. "What did… what did I do? I did nothing."

"You must have done _something_. She just wouldn't up and leave without a reason."

"I have hardly seen her since healing her after the fairies took her! She was always too busy, too tired. I respected her wishes and was letting her heal."

"Oh my God. You are so clueless! For someone who supposedly has such a reputation with women, you really know nothing about them! Are you telling me that you just left her, scarred up, jumping at every noise, alone this whole time?"

"That is what she said she wanted." His face was taught.

"Read between the lines, Vampire! You did the worst thing you could've done! She had a major traumatic incident, not to mention taking a major blow to her self-esteem by being so wounded, and the man she loves just abandons her? You were supposed to show up, be the vampire in shining armor, and make her feel safe and that she was still attractive."

"Wait – what? Love? She loves me?"

A loud sigh came across the phone. "Yeeeessss, she loves you. She's always loved you."

And I was supposed to just magically know this? She never said it."

"God, no wonder you've never bonded before, Sookie is the only woman who would put up with you. You can feel her emotions with the bond, can't you? You couldn't feel it?"

"I felt…strong emotions. But she always says one thing and does another, so I wasn't sure."

"Well, get sure. Everyone knew it but you. She loves you, and you've just screwed up royally. The question is, do _you_ love _her_? Because if you don't, then I suggest you just leave her alone to start whatever new life she's building. Stop screwing with her head!" _Click_. Amelia had hung up.

Eric raised his eyes to me. "Pam, is this true? Does she love me?"

"Yes, Master, she does. Or she did. Amelia is right, you really should have been there for her. Dear Abby says…"

"I don't care about Dear Abby. Why did no one tell me?"

"It wasn't our place. We assumed the two of you would finally figure it out yourselves." I gave a useless, but satisfying sigh, spun on my heel and marched out of his office. _Men!_


	7. Chapter 7

EPOV

After getting off the phone with the witch, I was stunned. I shut the door to my office and tried to process what I had just been told.

Sookie… loved me? Why had she never told me? I had felt many emotions from her – fear at times, lust, apprehension, and something else I had never been quite able to identify. Was that love I had felt?

I began to think back on our relationship. Meeting her for the first time, with Compton, I could tell she was intimidated, yet she responded to me with honesty, grace and humor. I had appreciated that immediately – being in my position, with my age and status in my community, there were very few beings who were honest with me. They all wanted or needed something from me, and would tell me what they thought they needed to get what they desired. Even the fangbangers weren't honest – all playing dress up and trying to be something they weren't.

When Sookie took me into her home, I remember (now) that she was always honest with me then – although she applied my technique of "I may not tell you everything, but what I do tell you is the truth." I knew she kept back from me some of what she was feeling, but what she did say had the ring of truth to it. I knew she didn't really want me there, in the beginning at least, but she was totally honest about what was going on.

Even in flaunting the tiger in front of me, she was honest. She never attempted to hide it or deny it – she told me straight out what she thought and what I could do about it. I smiled, remembering my lover when she told me off. So brave, never showing fear!

Looking back, I could see that all these things stemmed from… love. She showed me the greatest respect by never lying to me. And when you love, you show respect – even if it comes in the form of telling off the one you love for being too "high handed." Even in bonding with me, under duress, she showed that she respected me enough to choose me. In Rhodes, she saved me. _Me_. Not Compton, not the tiger, she came for me and for Pam. That was love. She acted out of instinct to save the ones she loved.

Gods, how did I not see this before? Me, who usually sees every angle of every situation, looking for an advantage. How I was so blind?

I realized suddenly – I was blinded… by love I hadn't felt in a millenia. The last person I loved was my mother. Of course I didn't recognize romantic love when I felt it. I didn't realize it before, but it was there, right from the moment I met her. I always went to protect her, even when it was to my own detriment, like the night Felipe de Castro took over. All I could think about was getting to _her_. And once I was there, I did what I had to do to keep her safe. Protecting her was as important as protecting myself – it was one and the same.

And now, she's alone, somewhere I can't protect her, and its killing me. I grabbed my phone again.

"Compton, this is Northman. Anything yet?"

"No. I glamoured the night guard at the bank into letting me look at her account, and she's basically cleaned it out. I think she's using cash for everything, because she hasn't used her credit card. She's been planning this for a while – her bank records show she had been slowly taking money out over about 2 months. Oh, there was one thing, but I don't know if it will go anywhere."

"What is it? We don't have any other leads, so I'll follow up on whatever you've found."

"I found the record of the person who bought her car – they filled out the title paperwork yesterday. It's a man named Michael Kirby, he lives over in Monroe."

I took down the address. "Well done, Compton, and keep looking."

"I will. I miss her too, you know." He hung up.

I yelled to Pam that I was leaving and within seconds had the Corvette spinning out of the Fangtasia back lot. I punched the address into my GPS and redlined it all the way to Monroe. In an absurdly short amount of time, I pulled up in front of a small, well-kept house. Sitting in front was Sookie's old Malibu. I got a pang, seeing it.

I approached the front door and knocked. A nondescript young man with a shiny new wedding ring answered.

"Michael Kirby?"

He nodded and looked up at my eyes, and I had him.

"I'm here about the woman you bought your car from, Sookie Stackhouse," I said slowly. He nodded again. "I want you to tell me everything you know about when you met with her."

His glazed eyes held mine. "She… was pretty. I met her on March 17 to see the car, but I had to wait to buy it until April 1. Said… said she was leaving town and needed it until she moved."

"Where was she moving?"

"Said… going to live in a city for the first time. Um… moving to… Oklahoma City."

And there it was. "You will close the door, and you will not remember that I was here, questioning you. Do it now." He shut the door and I heard him say, "Honey, why did I go to the door again?"

I moved at vamp speed and was back in the Corvette in seconds, halfway back to the highway in minutes. I grabbed my phone for what seemed like the thousandth time that day.

"Compton. She's in Oklahoma City. Find out where."


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Per review requests, some lemons included in this chapter! This is my first attempt at writing really lemony stuff, let me know what you think. Keep the reviews coming, your comments are influencing how the story goes!_

SPOV

It had been three weeks in Oklahoma City. Work was going well, I was getting to know Lori and Paul, the other assistant who was working towards his master's degree in library science. Paul mostly worked nights, but we overlapped shifts occasionally. He seemed sweet, but reserved.

Lori had been an unimaginable amount of help. She had helped me find a place to live, in a small suburb called Bethany. It was a townhouse, part of a block of just six units, on a small side street that was quiet. Blue with white trim, it had a cute little front porch and even a small area where I could plant flowers if I wanted. She also helped me get some furniture and get moved in – she volunteered her teenage son and her husband for the heavy lifting, and it was a huge help.

Mostly I stuck to thrift store finds for furniture, but I decided to splurge and buy a new bed. I'd never picked my own bed, or had a new mattress, so it was exciting to me to go shop and try out all the different models. It gave me a pang of regret though – I hadn't wanted to leave my bed behind in Bon Temps - that bed held a lot of memories for me - but there was just no way I could load it into the truck myself.

My little home was taking shape. I carefully situated my treasures from Gran's house and my new furniture. There wasn't a lot, but it was all mine. A small kitchen and living room/dining room area, with a bedroom and bathroom upstairs. I had to laugh when I saw the bedroom – the previous tenant had left curtains, and they were blackout curtains. Trust me to get a place to live that a vampire could sleep in during the day. I left them open, defiantly.

I spent my evenings reading, curled up in Gran's old chair. Working in the fiction section had introduced me to lots of new authors, so I was working my way through lots of books. I hadn't even bothered to get a television, I was just enjoying my life being so quiet. Sometimes Lori invited me over for a family dinner, and I enjoyed being in such a "normal" atmosphere.

Now that I had a permanent address, I had used one of my lunch breaks to get an Oklahoma driver's license. I felt oddly pleased when I looked at it; it was physical proof that I had started a new life. I spent my other lunch breaks grabbing a book and bagged lunch and heading over to the Myriad Gardens to lie on the grass and relax. It was a beautiful park, with a pond and giant goldfish. It was a little oasis right in the middle of downtown, and I loved it. It was starting to get warm, so it was nice to lie in the sun on the well-tended grass and just _be_.

The only problem with my new life was the dream. It started the first night in my new bed. I had curled up on my new mattress with my old quilt and quickly fallen asleep.

_Cool hands ran slowly over my curves, tracing down my leg and back up to slip under my nightgown. A strong hand brushed the side of my breast. I felt a body behind me, and a hand brushed my hair back from my face and neck._

_"My Lover," a voice whispered against my neck. I felt soft kisses, a mouth nipping gently at my ear. _

_I pressed against the long body, and was rolled gently onto my back. My gown was pushed up, and a cool mouth found my breasts, laving the nipples until they ached with want. I arched my back, to encourage the mouth to take more. _

_A large hand slipped into my panties, stroking and teasing my folds. My breath caught. Strong fingers slipped inside, gently thrusting, while the cool mouth continued to suck and lick my breasts. _

_"Eric," I breathed._

_"Yes, my love. I'm here," he responded, then went back to my breasts. His fingers continued to work me, probing and pumping. _

_I moaned as he found my sweet spot. "Oh God, Eric… yes…" _

_He kept playing my body like a grand piano until I was screaming with need, just at the edge. His mouth opened wider on my breasts, and I felt the tiny prick of his fangs –_

I awoke, my entire body tensed with desire, and found myself in an empty bed, alone. My hands reached out, seeking him, and came up empty. I sobbed myself back to sleep.

* * *

EPOV

I woke from my daytime rest frustrated and hard as a rock. Since Sookie left I had dreamt of her almost every night.

_I smelled her before I saw her. Her natural scent of soap, shampoo and a bit of fairy, mixed with her arousal. _

_I was sitting on my throne of Fangtasia, bored as usual, looking over the sea of black before me. I smelled her, and whipped my head to the door. She stood there, just looking at me for a moment. She was wearing her white dress with the red flowers, the one she wore the first time I saw her. _

_She made her way over to my throne, and the crowds parted for her like the queen she was. She didn't speak, but instead knelt at my throne and ran her hands up my legs, stroking my thighs through the soft leather of my pants. She reached my zipper, and slowly ran it down. _

_Reaching in, she freed me from my confines and began slowly stroking my length. I was astonished to see her do this in public. The crowd simply stopped and watched, as she began to lick my shaft, feeling it grow in her hands, making me as hard as I only ever was for her. _

_Achingly slowly, she slid her warm mouth around my cock. She began sucking strong, her hands working me in counter-rhythm to her mouth. Up and down, around and around. I threaded my hands in her hair, rubbing her head gently as she worked me. _

_"My Lover," I groaned. Blue eyes shot up and met mine. I moaned. _

_My hips began to pump of their own accord, thrusting into her hot, wet mouth. I began to move faster. Suddenly, she relaxed her jaw and took me deep into her throat. The sensation was incredible, and I could feel myself start to come._

_"Sookie…" I ground out –_

I woke, well before dark. FUCK! I was horny, frustrated, and trapped in my chamber. And, I realized with a start, lonely. I growled and made my way to the shower, where I finished myself off with my hand – _again_. If someone had ever told me that I, Eric Northman, would be reduced to masturbating in the shower, I would've laughed and then most likely drained them.

But just the thought of another touching me was repulsive. I had been subsisting on TruBlood, because if a human even got close enough to me to feed, I became nauseous. I was starved for Sookie – ruined for her, by her.

I dressed and paced my chamber until it was dark. I made my way to Fangtasia, throwing open the employee door so hard it slammed back. The waitresses, poking their head out of the restroom where they were finishing their makeup, quickly jumped back. My mood lately had been foul, and I was taking it out on everyone and everything around me. I had thrown and broken three iPhones, and my day man Bobby was worn out getting them replaced and reprogrammed for me.

I threw myself into my desk chair and brooded. I knew _where_ she was, or at least where she said she was going, but had no clue other than the city. I knew I could track her if I went to Oklahoma City, probably pinpoint her location, but I wanted to observe her first, get some idea of this new life she had made.

I was still scowling over this when there was knock on my office door – Compton, with Pam behind him.

"Yes?"

"I have it. Her address. She applied for a driver's license two days ago, and listed a permanent address for it. The Oklahoma DMV just updated their systems today, and I got it." He looked as excited as I had ever seen him – still gray, maybe a bit more so from spending so much time searching for Sookie, but clearly pleased.

I snatched the paper. It had an address in Bethany, Oklahoma. I had an idea where that was from the open map of Oklahoma City on my desk, but no idea what sort of place it was. I looked at the younger vampire, smiling.

"Well done, Compton. I am most pleased with your work, you have outdone yourself."

"Thank you, Sheriff." He nodded at me. "May I ask what you are planning to do now?"

My hand was already on my jacket. "I'm going to see her, of course. Pam, take over things while I'm gone. I have no idea when I'll be back, but-"

My child interrupted me. "Eric, I really don't think that's a good idea. She was clearly upset if she felt the need to leave, move, and you rushing off to her – I just don't think it's the best idea."

Compton nodded again. "I agree."

I paused, my entire body tensed with the desire to leave, go, _see her_. "You have a better idea?"

"I will go. I will see her, talk to her. I think she might talk to me, and she might run from you again," Pam stated.

"Again, I agree. You will probably overwhelm her, but Pam might be able to talk some sense into her. You two aren't the best at communicating, you know."

"Thank you for that, Compton," I said dryly. I stopped for a moment to think. Pam's plan had some merit, even if only for the simple fact that I did not want Sookie to run again. Sookie and Pam were friends; Sookie might listen to her.

I nodded. "Fine. Pam, you will go to her. And you will… explain things." I gave her a significant look. "And you will report back to me often."

"Of course, Master." She nodded. "I will leave right away." She turned and strode from the office.

Compton stood there watching me, a shrewd expression on his face.

"What?" I asked when I couldn't stand to feel his eyes on me any longer.

"You love her," he stated. "I wasn't sure until now. You would never send Pam in your place if you didn't – you would be so sure you were right and should be the one to go. You are putting her feelings before your own."

"What of it?" I growled, uncomfortable.

"About time," he simply stated, nodded to me again, and left.


	9. Chapter 9

I had traded shifts with Paul, agreeing to cover one of his evening shifts so he could study for an exam. The security guard, Simon, had walked me to my car after the library closed, and had just stepped back into the parking garage's elevator when I heard it.

"Hello, Sookie."

I gasped and spun around, and out of the shadows stepped Pam. She looked like a perfect soccer mom in her khaki slacks and light blue twin set. Her blue headband made her look more than ever like Alice in Wonderland. With fangs, obviously. 

"PAM! You scared me to death! What are you doing here?" I screeched. 

"What are YOU doing here would be the more appropriate question, I think."

"I _live_ here, thank you very much. And I just got off work." A thought occurred to me and I began spinning around, craning my head towards the shadows. "Where's Eric?"

"In Shreveport."

"Sure, right. Like he would send you after me and not come himself," I shot back.

"Actually, that is exactly what he did, after Bill and I convinced him that coming after you himself might have a... negative reaction. Why don't you call Fangtasia and see?" She dialed a number and held out her phone.

"Fangtasia, the bar with the bite," Belinda answered.

"I need to speak with Eric Northman, please." I could barely get the words out, I had begun shaking so hard. I heard the phone being walked across the room. 

"Sookie? Lover?" I heard Eric's deep voice across the line and started shaking harder.

"Sookie...? Dear One, please, talk to me." His voice sounded almost... what? Hesitant, very unlike Eric. 

"Dearest, is Pam there? If you aren't going to say anything, can you pass the phone to Pam?" I wordlessly handed her the phone.

I heard him talking anxiously to Pam but all I could make out were her responses. I sat, legs facing out in the driver's seat of my Beetle - my legs didn't seem to want to hold me up any longer.

"Yes... she looks to be fine, but she is shaking quite badly right now. I see... no, no I won't. Of course." She hung up abruptly. Vampires never seemed to say "goodbye" on the phone.

Come, Sookie, let's move you to the passenger seat. You're in no shape to drive and I promised Eric no harm would come to you, so I shall drive." She gently helped me from the driver's side around and in to the passenger seat. Quick as a flash she was back around the car and slid into the driver's seat.

"Cute car, I quite like it. Love the color, it suits you. Now, where is your apartment?"

As if on auto-pilot, I directed her to my little townhouse. I could hardly believe I was sitting in my car, in my new home, being driven around by Pam. In about 10 minutes (5 faster than it usually took me) Pam pulled up in front.

"Again, very cute. Very you. Are you going to invite me in?" she asked, after unlocking the front door and helping me up the steps on the porch. 

"Won't you please come in, Pam," I said flatly, still in a state of shock. 

She swung the door open and stepped in, guiding me as well. Taking a long look around, she asked, "Where do you keep your liquor?"

"What?" I heard her as through a fog.

"Alcohol. You need a drink. In the kitchen?" She began opening and closing cabinets, finally unearthing my bottles of gin and tonic water. "A ha!" She expertly mixed me a drink and brought it to me, sitting on the sofa afterwards. "Drink it. You look like you could use a strong one."

I took a swallow and gasped - it was strong, alright. "Pam... what are you doing here?" I managed to squeak out.

"I could ask you the same question," she replied. "Instead, I will answer yours. I am here because we miss you, Sookie." Her voice sounded so sincere that I almost, almost believed her.

"'We'? Who is 'we?'" The gin was starting to make my head a bit clearer.

"We as in myself, Bill, the shifter... and Eric."

I snorted. "Eric doesn't miss anyone. He never thinks of anyone but himself."

"If you truly think that, then you are as blind as he is," she shot back.

"Oh, really? And how is he blind? Except for failing to notice that I was seriously injured, emotionally battered and horribly depressed the past few months?"

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. Sookie, give him a break. He's a **_man_**. He has no idea what women are talking about unless we tell him in no uncertain terms. He thought when you said you wanted to be left alone that you actually meant it. He didn't even know you were in love with him until Amelia told him."

"What? Amelia told him WHAT?" I sputtered.

"Oh, give it a rest, Sookie. Everyone, except for you two blind fools, knows you love each other. He was completely blindsided when Amelia filled him in. Like I said, he's male, therefore clueless." She giggled. Pam actually _giggled_.

I did what I always do when faced with uncomfortable situations - I ran. Or, at least, I tried to. Faster than a flash, Pam was between me and the door. "Give it up, Sookie, the running act's getting old."

Hearing her words, I crumpled to the floor. Tears I had been trying to hold back ever since I first saw her in the parking garage came pouring out. I felt cool arms around me, lifting me until I was sitting, strangely, on Pam's lap.

"Shh... Sookie, it's alright. Everything is alright." She soothed and rubbed circles on my back.

"It's NOT alright, Pam. Everything is wrong!" I sobbed.

She began to rock me, gently. "How is everything wrong? You love Eric, Eric loves you. There's nothing wrong about that. The only thing wrong is you being here and him being there, and neither of you knowing, truly, why that is."

"It's wrong, because of what he and I _are_. He'll stay looking young and handsome, I'll get old and wrinkled. He'll always be inclined to violence, I'll always avoid it. His life is filled with danger and as long as I'm around him, I'll be sucked in. **_That's_** what's wrong! I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop - for him to wake up and realize he could have better than me, prettier than me, thinner than me. And I just know he'll realize it when I'm old and wrinkled and he doesn't want me anymore, and I'll be alone. Again. But this time... I'll know what I'm missing." With that, I completely broke down and wept on Pam's designer twinset. 

She let me cry for a while, and when my tears seemed to be drying up, she spoke. "Sookie, what if you are looking at this all wrong?"

"I... huh?" Eloquent, I know. 

"First of all, Eric doesn't love you because of how you look. Yes, you come in a pretty little package - although not right this second, since you're all red and swollen - but he loves you for who you _are_. The fiesty part inside of you that challenges him and doesn't let him get away with anything. He can get pretty girls any time he wants, but he doesn't want them because they offer him nothing that cannot be replaced. You, on the other hand, offer so much more. He loves you because of your spirit, your honesty, your passion for life. And, quite simply, because you are not afraid of him." 

"Not afraid of him? Are you kidding? I'm _terrified_ of Eric!"

"No, you are not. You may have been afraid of him when you first met him - he can be... imposing - but since you started to see who the real Eric is, you have not been afraid of him because you know he won't hurt you. What you are terrified of are your feelings for him. You are afraid to let him have any kind of real claim on you, because you are afraid he will be snatched away like all the other people you've loved in your short life. But Sookie, Eric is not like everyone else. He's stronger, and he's a survivor. And he has been looking for you for his whole existence. He's not going anywhere. And right now, neither am I. You're exhausted and you need to sleep. Is there somewhere I can rest safely during the day, here?" 

Pam sat, stroking my hair. I was soothed by it, and all cried out, so I just nodded. "Bedroom has blackout curtains."

"Excellent. Let's get you to bed." She lifted me as easily as if I was a baby, and carried me upstairs. Laying me on the bed gently, she removed my work clothes and dressed me in a soft nightgown. She pulled the curtains tightly closed, making sure no light would seep into the room, and tucked me in. I heard her shoes hit the floor, and she lay down next to me on the bed. She took my hand, and I drifted off to sleep, holding hands with a vampire. My friend. 


	10. Chapter 10

I woke the next day with Pam lying lifelessly next to me, still holding my hand. I extracted my warm fingers from her cool ones and sat up in bed.

_Not the cool fingers you want_, whispered my brain. I told my brain to shut up.

Rising, I made my way into the bathroom and mindlessly got ready for work. I hadn't worked there long enough to earn time off, and anyway, I wanted to cling to my new routine. It was my lifeline. Routine was what had always kept me anchored, kept me sane. And right now routine would help remind me that _this_ was real, this life I had begun building from nothing. Regardless of a certain vampiress asleep in my bed. 

I snorted aloud. All of the times Pam had teased me, flirted with me, and here she was in my bed and she had done nothing to me. 

I went through the day as if in a fog. I know my coworkers noticed my state of walking sleep, but they didn't comment on it. I caught a few things from their thoughts, but nothing really registered.

I went home and headed straight upstairs. I sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for Pam to rise. As soon as she stirred, I asked, "So what's the deal? Eric sends you, you have 'orders' to take me back to Louisiana?"

She sat up against the headboard. "Good evening to you, sunshine."

"Pam!"

She sighed. "No, Sookie, that is not 'the deal.' I have no orders to take you back to Shreveport, Bon Temps, or anywhere else on earth. I came here to see you because I thought it would be better than Eric to coming roaring here and do just that."

"So I'm on borrowed time? Until he gets here?"

"No you are not. Now, let me ask you a question: do you have any idea in that fragile human brain of yours how much Eric cares for you?"

"Eric doesn't care about anyone but himself. He's told me numerous times that he would only protect me if it didn't mean harming himself."

"And yet, he has protected you, to his detriment. Repeatedly, actually. So what does that say to you?"

I sighed. "How so?"

"He interfered with Andre, a much more powerful vampire in the hierarchy, to bond with you instead. Eric's never bonded before, with any human. Hell, he has only given his blood to me, to make me, but yet he gives it to you freely. He left his business and all his minions to their own devices to come to you on the night of the takeover. He has defied the king and Victor Madden to keep you with him. Do you have any idea of what they have offered him, to stand aside and let them take you to Nevada?"

I blinked, startled. "What?"

"He could have named any price and it would have been given. The most beautiful women have been placed under his nose. Titles, positions, anything he wanted, he could have gotten. And yet he did not. Because of _you_. Because it means something to you to have him be faithful - even if you did not know it, he has been with no others since you bonded. Business is down, actually, since he stopped selecting among the fangbangers.

Sookie, you are so young sometimes, it wrings my undead heart. You have a gift in the palm of your hands and you run from it. I know Bill screwed you over - I know he hurt you. But the one being in the world who puts your first, time and again, you run from? You really have some growing up to do." Pam turned away, disgusted.

"DAMMIT, Pam! Why are you telling me this _now_? I've moved on, started a new life!"

"I suppose we thought you would figure it out on your own. And, really Sookie, you didn't try so hard to not be found. You didn't take on another identity, it wasn't too hard to find you. I think you _wanted_ to be found."

"I wanted to do things under my own name, to be something in my own right! That's why I didn't take on a different identity!"

"Sookie, you _are_ something in your own right. You have a gift that has made you famous in the supe community. You saved lives at Rhodes. You've worked for kings and queens. You have a 1,000 year old Viking - who has no shortage of female admirers - pining after you. What more could you possibly want?"

"What do I want? Well, I'll tell you what I want! I want a life of peace, love that doesn't mean people dying for me or over me! I want a home, and a husband, and maybe a cat, I don't know. I'm sick and tired of wars, and fighting, and being a pawn in other peoples' games. I want to go to work, where people like me for me, not my talent. Then I want to come home and have a love there waiting for me. And I do not want to get beat up, shot, staked or any other form of injury!" I threw myself face first on the bed and sobbed like a child. 

I felt hands on my hair, after a moment, stroking it. "Sookie, I sometimes forget that you aren't as old as we vampires are - even my 100 something years. Your life has thrown you a lot of - what is the expression? Curve balls?" I could hear Pam smiling. "I'll run you a bath, you just relax for a while. I threw you quite a curve ball by showing up yesterday, you need some time to recouperate." 

I heard Pam start the bath, then she came and gently led me into the bathroom. She quickly undressed me and helped me in to the tub. She dimmed the lights and left the room. And even though she went downstairs, I could hear her calling Eric. 


	11. Chapter 11

PPOV

I _really_ did not want to make the phone call I was about to make. But there was no point in avoiding it. I dialed with a perfectly filed nail. He answered on the first ring. Damn.

Yes, Pamela? It was never a good thing when he called me Pamela.

Are you alone?

Just a moment. I could hear him moving through the crowd; he must be on the floor at Fangtasia.

Go ahead.

You can speak freely now?

As freely as one can in a bar full of vampires, yes.

The situation is as I thought. It is much more dire than you expected. She will not come back to Louisiana, I think.

You think, or you know? I sighed. Stubborn man. He had spent years watching her, but did he really know her at all?

Eric, I will be blunt. She feels she has suffered greatly at the hands of vampires, and not just Compton. She feels you abandoned her during the Fairy war, to be perfectly honest. And even before that, in all honesty, we did use her greatly for her gift and did not provide her adequate protection. She wishes to stay here, keep her gift a secret and live as normal a life as she can. Eric she has started a nice life here. She has a job where she is treated as a person, not just some blonde beer slinger with nice boobs. She has a little apartment that is quite cute, and an adorable little car. She wants a normal life, with a husband, a home, a cat.

I see. She feels quite strongly about this?

Very strongly, yes. She was not happy to see me. She has cried herself to sleep both nights I have been here.

Pam, you know she leaks quite frequently.

Not like this. This is the way I sobbed when I was told I was not allowed to marry the boy of my choosing when I was human.

I see. He was quiet for a moment. I knew what was coming. Has she mentioned me?

She has. It is clear she cares for you Eric, but it is also clear she hasnt allowed herself to realize the depth of her feelings for you, much like you for her. It is also clear that she feels abandoned by you. Amelia was right – you were supposed to be her vampire in shining armor and ride in, make her feel pretty again and save her.

Eric, Sookie feels that she has never come first with anyone in her life. With her parents, they came first with each other. Her grandmother tried, but she worked at not treating Sookie or her brother differently, and she was trying to make ends meet. With Bill, he left her for Lorena, and even before that he ignored her to work on his database. I did point out all the times you _have_ put her first, but she worries that with you being a Sheriff, she will never truly come first with you – your area will. She worries that she will always be seen as an asset in our world, something to control or covet. And, as she so rightly point out, every time she ends up involved in our vampire shit, she ends up getting hurt. Which is, in the end, the reason she left. Not because she didnt care for you, but because it was the only way she could see to stop the crazy cycle that had become her life.

I am sorry, Eric. I said, softly. I know this is not what you wanted to hear. But I would be remiss if I did not tell you the truth. Sookie is my friend, as well as you, and I want the best for both of you. Im not sure how to make that happen, exactly, right now – how to make you both happy. But I do want you both to be happy. So all I can do is to tell you what I have learned and trust you will make the best decision with that information.

I know you want the best, Pam. You are my best decision, by far. I could hear all his years of existence in his voice, and they were weighing him down. Where is Sookie now?

In the bath. I smirked, and I know he could hear it in my tone.

And you arent trying to ogle her? He was trying to lighten the mood.

I dont need to – I ogled her all night last night as she slept next to me. I couldnt resist the jab.

He groaned. That is hitting below the belt, Pamela.

Just trying to give you a little mental imagery to make you feel better, _Master_.

About time you remembered who is the Master here, _Child_. Stay there a few more days, take Sookie out, try to get her to have fun. I will let you know when I come to a decision.

Of course, Eric. I hung up and went back up the stairs.

Knocking on the bathroom door, I decided to have just a tiny bit of fun now.

Room for one more in there, Sookie?

PAM!

Chuckling, I shut the door again.


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Two updates in one weekend! Gasp! In response to some of your reviews, trust me, I have a plan! The Viking always knows what is best! (well, what I tell him is best)_

SPOV

The day after Pam's little bathroom stunt was Saturday. I left Pam sleeping, well, dead to the world, and went downstairs to do my usual Saturday chores. I threw a load of laundry in - tossing Pam's clothes in as well - tidied up the downstairs, doing a quick dusting and vacuum job. I headed out and around the corner to a car wash and cleaned up my little Beetle bug, inside and out. I bipped back to the townhouse and tossed the clothes into the dryer, mopped the kitchen floor, ran the dishwasher. I collapsed on the couch with a book and finally dozed for a while. 

I woke a few hours later to Pam standing over me, poking me in the chest.

"Get dressed, Miss Stackhouse. We're going out tonight."

"We are?"

"Yes, we are indeed. This little moping act you've had going since I got here is growing old. We're going out on the town, or at least whatever passes for "town" in these parts, and you're going to loosen up and have fun. Put on your dancing shoes and a party dress and let your hair down!" She gave me a fangy grin.

"Wow, that's a lot of expressions in one sentence, Pam."

"None of them seem to have you moving, so how about this? If you don't get your luscious ass off that couch, I will drain you. I'm hungry, too, so don't push me."

"Got it." I jumped up off the sofa and ran upstairs.  

~*~

An hour later, we were dressed to the nines and walking out the door. I was wearing a red silk dress with rhinestone straps and black stiletto heels that had large bows on the front. Pam had on a slinky ice blue dress that came to mid calf and black strappy heels.

"Keys," said Pam, holding out her hand. I looked at her blankly, my eyebrows raised in a silent question. "You're going to have fun tonight, and do a little drinking. So I'm your - what is the expression? - designated driver."

"Ah." I handed them over.

Pam followed my directions to Bricktown, Oklahoma City's nightlife district. One of the oldest parts of the city, it was made up of brick lined streets and old brick wearhouses, now converted into trendy clubs and restaurants. A river ran through the area, providing a nice walk, and there were shops and and even an enormous movie theater. 

We chose a club called "Rain" that featured indoor walls with rain running down, including one right through the middle of the club made of clear glass. It had great drinks and good music. Brightly color lights ran around the room, and it was dotted with small tables and tiny velvet colored stools. Pam got a blood and I got a gin and tonic. I tried to pay for my drink, but Pam refused, saying, "I want you to have fun tonight. Drink as much as you want and don't worry about the cost, I can afford it. You need to unwind!"

I thanked her and sipped my drink. It tasted really good. It really had been a long time since I had been out and able to kick back and have fun. Pam must've said something to the waitress, because as soon as I finished one drink, another was immediately placed in front of me. It kind of reminded me of being at Fangtasia. 

After about three drinks, I was starting to feel pretty good. The music was good, and I was bopping in my seat. There weren't a lot of people on the dance floor, so I decided to just go out and dance by myself. I danced for a number of songs, just swaying and twirling and enjoying have the room on the floor to really move. I kept making trips back to the table to get fresh drinks. Gradually, I began to realize that the club was filling up and the dance floor was getting more crowded. I was also feeling a little dizzy from all the gin and tonics. I had lost count, at that point, how many I had had. 

Pitbull's "I Know You Want Me" came on, and I felt large hands encircle my hips, pulling me into someone. I blithely swayed along - I mean, I was starting a new life, I would have to get over Eric eventually, right? Might as well start with just one dance. _Hiccup_. Faster than my tipsy eyes could track, Pam was next to me, hissing at whatever faceless guy was at my back. The male hands were gone, replaced by Pam's hands. I spun around, woozily, and we danced out the song together. 

Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" came on next, and I started laughing. I lurched closer to Pam. "This song is so funny." Pam raised one eyebrow at me. Sometimes she was so much like Eric it was scary. "It reminds me of me and Eric. It should be our theme song. 'Bad Romance.'" I threw my arms around her neck, laughing. 

"Okay, Sookie, I think you've had enough letting your hair down for one night. Let's get you home." Pam slipped her arm around my waist and started leading me out of the club, stopping at the claim counter to get our purses. I laughed even harder when I saw she had stashed the claim ticket in her bra. 

She picked me up and carried me next door to the parking garage. I sang, upside down from her shoulder, "Ra ra ra a a, roma roma ma ma, ga ga oo la la, want your bad romance!" over and over.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you can't sing?" she asked snippily.

"Yes, lots," I said happily.

"So glad to see you heeded their advice," she replied, getting me into the car and buckled in.

"Click it, or ticket!" I laughed.

"Sookie, you are amusing," she smiled in spite of herself.

"You know, Pam, in spite of being a vampire, you're OK," I said.

"High words of praise indeed," she said drily.

"Ooh, let's turn on the radio!" I giggled, reaching for the knob.

"Let's not, if it means you will sing some more," she said, swatting my hand away.

"You're no fun." I pouted. We drove a few miles in silence.

Suddenly my mood tanked. I sniffled. "I miss him, Pam." A tear trickled down.

She reached over and patted my hand. "I know, Sookie. He misses you, too."

"I can't go back, though. I can't get caught up in all that again."

"Don't worry. Eric will work something out. He's very good at strategic thinking." I pondered that in my inebriated haze until we got back to the townhouse.

She helped me into the house and up the stairs, and got me into my nightgown. I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N: It's been requested that I write longer chapters, so… I'm trying!! I had tried to get my ideas out faster, which resulted in the shorter chapters. I've been working on this for a few days, and so I hope you're happy with the longer result. To those of you who aren't seeing my quotation marks, I promise you I use them when I write, but I think things go a little haywire sometimes when I upload to . Sorry!_

_A special thanks to my devoted reviewers who always take the time to leave me such nice comments! Sluggysmom, Disneyflint, VikingElle (love you Mo!), KYSun, RubySun03, WantstobeMrsDarcy, Sweet Sookie, outinritefield1, ncmiss12, murgatroid-98, and more! I have so many great readers! Thanks to all of you have left me reviews, I read each and every one and I value them all, even if I didn't specifically mention you and even if its negative. Thanks to everyone who's favorited me too!_ _You guys rock!_

Pam and I had spent a quiet Sunday evening together. We both slept most of the day (well, I slept most of the day, she literally slept all day, of course) and I nursed a hangover. When she rose, she nursed a True Blood and I indulged in some comfort food. I made her go to IHOP with me so I could dig into some pancakes and she made snarky comments about the other patrons' attire (and probably thought snarky comments about my attire as well, seeing as I indulged in sweats and an LSU t-shirt). I slurped on a cherry coke so thick and red it looked almost like her True Blood, and got me some funny looks. Oh well, it tasted divine. At least _that_ was Pam approved. 

When we got back to my townhouse we did silly girl things together – manicures, pedicures, talking about our favorite romantic novels. We had a nice night, just relaxing and hanging out. It's not often that I just "hung out" with a vampire – there was usually some ulterior motive, some job I was needed for, or sex was involved. We talked a little bit more I went to bed early and not too long before I had to get up for work, I felt Pam sink gently onto the bed next to me. 

The next day at work passed fairly uneventfully. I told Lori about my night out on the town. She seemed interested in my out of town guest, but I was _sooo_ not interested in another girls night out, this one including my suburban soccer mom coworker _and_ my vampiress ex-lover's child. Talk about awkward conversations! I grabbed some groceries and more True Blood on the way home, since Pam's visit seemed to be oddly open ended.

Shortly after sunset, Pam was stumbling sleepily down the stairs and I was the midst of cooking dinner for myself. I already had her True Blood in the microwave, all she had to do was press start. I was just taking the pasta off the stove when there was a knock at the door. I looked at Pam, she looked at me; we both shrugged, clueless. I went over to the door and looked out the peephole.

It took me a second to realize what I was seeing. Something puffy. No, fuzzy. No, furry. Actually, it was all those things. A small kitten was squirming in large hands helplessly, mewing.

I heard a voice. "Please open the door, lover, your pet has just urinated down my arm." 

Behind me Pam started to cackle. "Oh, that's priceless. Sookie, don't open the door yet, let's see what else it will do."

"I heard that, Pamela. Lover, I have an entire romantic gesture out here for you if you will put me out of my misery and open the door?"

Well, never let it be said that Sookie Stackhouse is not a sucker for romance. I opened the door.

There stood Eric, in all his 6'5 Viking glory, with a tiny white Persian kitten tucked into one arm, getting white fur all over his black Fangtasia t-shirt, which was tucked into snug fitting black jeans tapering into black boots. His blonde hair glinted in my porch light. True to his word, one marble white arm was dripping. The kitten, it had to be said, looked both relieved and pleased with itself. 

"Eric, what the... what are you... why...?" I seemed to be having a hard time finishing my sentences. 

"I have been informed that I have been remiss. You want the home, the husband, the family pet, the normal life. And, I should have been your knight in shining armor and come along on my white horse and made you feel beautiful again. Now, I stopped riding horses when they invented the much more comfortable automobile, and as you know I do have swords, but I long since gave up my armor. I did, however, just for you, arrange for a white Corvette." He stepped aside, and, sure enough, behind him was a brand new, spankin', shiny white Corvette. I couldn't help it; I laughed. 

"As you can see, I've also brought the pet. A little birdie - well, a loud, sarcastic blonde birdie - told me you wanted a cat, so a kitty has found it's way to you. Anything you want that I can make happen, I would do for you. Even if it does pee on my arm," he chuckled. 

"I've put all my houses in Shreveport up for sale, and since you seem to want to stay here, then here we shall stay, if you will have me. You have to but point at a house and it will be our home, Sookie Stackhouse.

As for the husband part, well, I realized something while we were apart, Sookie. I miss you when you aren't around. And when you left, I was lost. I've found something in you that I haven't found in the rest of my existence, and I can't replace it, and I won't find it again, because you are one of a kind. I know you don't really consider us married, but I would marry you the second it's legal, if you would have me. 

And as for making you feel beautiful again, lover, to me you were always beautiful. But I plan on making you feel beautiful every second of every night of your life, if you'll have me. But you are truly a sight for sore eyes tonight." He smirked, glancing down at my after work attire of sweat shorts and a Winnie the Pooh t-shirt." And please take this kitten before it urinates on me again," he finished in a rush. Eric never was good at big emotional speeches. I reached out to take the kitten, laughing through my tears at this point. 

"Eric, come in off the porch. The neighbors will think I'm crazy! Vampires showing up with kittens and impassioned speeches!" 

Eric came in and immediately began taking in my new home, scoping out the escape hatches, as it were. I made it easy for him. "One door in and out, and really, just the one window in the bedroom upstairs and the one at the end of the hall there. Not a lot to worry about. Oh, and there's a tiny one in the shower, but I doubt you could squeeze through there."

He raised an eyebrow, and walked into the kitchen to wash kitten pee off his arm. "There's a window in your shower?"

I sighed. "It's one of those tiny ones, made of those squares of really thick glass that lets light in but you can't see through. AND it's on the second floor, so the only person who could see me anyway would be someone who could fly. Know anyone like that?" I gave him an arch look.

"Hmm, well I do enjoy I good peep through your windows now and then, but I suppose I will have to settle for seeing you in the flesh."

I snorted. "You're assuming I'm letting you stay here."

"Were you not swayed by my romantic gestures? I brought you what I was assured by the sales girl in the pet store was the cutest kitten on the planet," he said while sitting down on my couch.

"While it IS cute, very cute," I admitted with a smile, cuddling the fluffy ball and eliciting a smile from Eric by doing so, "I'm sure the undoubtedly pretty sales girl was trying to score a date with you."

"Highly doubtful, seeing as I told her upfront I was shopping for my wife," he replied smoothly.

"Shopping for your wife loses a bit of clout when you aren't wearing a wedding ring," I responded.

"Would you like me to? I'd do it in an instant. I only thought you would want me to wait until we had a legal ceremony, but I suppose I could wear two rings. In fact, I don't know why I didn't think of it when we had the pledging ceremony, although that _was_ last minute. Of course it didn't seem real to you without a ring! You could have two rings too! An eternity band for our pledging ceremony, since for vampires it really is closer to an eternity, and an engagement and wedding ring for our human ceremony! Would you like that, dearest?" Eric seemed really excited by this idea. I had to admit, I was a little pleased at the prospect myself. I mean, what woman wouldn't want TWO sets of rings? But…

"That's a really nice idea, Eric, but we still have a lot of things to work through first."

"Of course, more talking. I should've known you would see that as trying to buy you." A dark look crossed his face.

"No! No, I don't see that as trying to buy me." I handed the kitten to Pam, who, after the initial shock, actually seemed to enjoy cuddling it, and went over to Eric. "No, I see the sentiment behind the idea, and it's beautiful, and sweet, and I love it. But I don't want to just rush into anything. There were a lot of reasons I left, and we can't just fix it with a kitten and rings, Eric. What about you being a Sheriff and all the politics and hooplah that goes along with it?"

"Oh! I almost forgot, with all the other details. I quit."

Pam's and my jaws dropped. Pam almost dropped the kitten. It let out a frightened squeak and she caught it.

"You QUIT?" we said in unison.

"Eric, you've been Sheriff for almost 100 years," Pam said. "You love it, you can't quit. And what about Fangtasia, and all your other businesses?"

"I was growing tired of being Sheriff. Too much paperwork, too many details, too much technology – which you know isn't my thing. And de Castro – well, I enjoyed being Sheriff under Sophie Anne – she was fair, and she left me alone to control my area. De Castro wants too much control over my area – I believe they call it micromanaging now. I've lived too long to be micromanaged. So, I told him I wanted out. It turns out that with enough money and a written agreement not to go against him or become Sheriff for another monarch, which I don't want to do anyway, I'm out.

And before you even ask, lover, you're out too. Part of the agreement, and a rather large sum of money, is that de Castro cannot contact you for telepathic work. If he, or anyone in his area does, I can mount a campaign against him. You know how vampires are about order and rules and honor - I'm counting on his honor and his love of money to stand by our agreement. If not, then my swords will back up my end to keep you out of everything you don't want to be a part of. I'm giving you my word, now, and you know that I'm a man of my word." I nodded, sort of stunned.

"As for my businesses, most of them are run by management companies and all I need to do is give them a change of address on where to send the check. As to Fangtasia, well," he pulled an envelope out of his back pocket, "Pamela, you have served me loyally for years. So, I'm giving you my half of Fangtasia. Sell it, keep it, I don't care. You're free to do as you wish – stay in Louisiana, move here to be near me, go wherever you want." He handed her the envelope.

It was clearly a rare thing to see Pam speechless, but I was witnessing it now. "Eric, I… I don't know what to say." A single red tear slid down her cheek. "Thank you."

He nodded. "You're welcome."

I reached over and squeezed her hand. "Pam, you're leaking! I never thought I'd see the day!"

Eric let out a roaring laugh while Pam chuckled and wiped her tear. "Shut it, human."

"So who will be Sheriff now, do you think?" I asked.

"Actually, de Castro mentioned asking Compton to do it," Eric said. "He's got the technical know-how, and in spite of my dislike for him personally, I have to admit he is fair. And, well, he did help me locate you, so… I gave him a recommendation to de Castro."

"Eric! Did you do something nice? For BILL??" I teased.

"Good thing I left Louisiana. Can't let a thing like that get out and ruin my reputation as a – what was it you call me? A bad ass?" He grinned, his face splitting grin.

I couldn't help it; I tackled him, launching myself into his lap and smothering him in a hug, covering his face in kisses. I could feel him chuckling beneath me, the chest rumbling laugh I loved and had missed so much. "Oh, lover, I have missed you. Its good to see you back to yourself again."

After a few minutes of letting us reunite, Pam had clearly reached her limit. "Ok, you two, get a room."

I sheepishly climbed off Eric's lap and made my way over to examine my abandoned pasta. "Oh, ick, its just one big soggy mess." Eric stuck his head over the pan. "Well, that settles it. Get dressed, ladies, I am taking you out for a celebratory dinner!"

Eric ran out and retrieved what looked like all the suitcases he could manage to fit in a Corvette, along with a carrying cage for the kitten, who had apparently ridden in the passenger seat all the way from Shreveport. I could along imagine what they had talked about on the ride.

"Planning on staying a while?" I teased, as he drug in bag after bag.

"As long as you'll have me," he grinned. "Besides, who knows how long it will be before we pick a house and I can have the movers in Shreveport bring the rest of my clothes?" I went a little pale thinking of how big a closet we would actually have to have to house all of Eric's clothes if this was just enough for a short stay.

"You know, maybe we should just build a house," I suggested.

"I like the way you think, lover," he beamed at me.

A short while later, we were all gussied up and ready to go. I had on a royal blue wrap dress and silver strappy heels. Pam had on a green dress with a layered skirt and black 40s style pumps, while Eric had on his usual black dress pants and red silk shirt. He looked like sex walking.

When we went to the parking lot, it was clear that we weren't all going to fit into the Corvette, so my little fantasy of Eric having to fold into my Beetle was going to come true. However, he pulled the "Maker card" and made Pam ride in the back. She grumbled about being a lady and trying to get out of the back in a dress, but he reminded her again of being 6'5 and she shut up and got in. He held out his hand for the keys and I said, "Uh uh, buddy, my town, my car, I'M driving!"

He grinned and said, "You know, I think I even missed you calling me 'buddy.'"

"Good, now get in. I want to see this." I clicked the remote lock for his side.

"Ooh, very impressive, lover. Remote locks. You _have_ moved up in the world."

"Hush. Get in, giant."

Thus began the process of a 6'5 Viking squeezing into a Beetle. Which was actually a little higher off the ground than a Corvette, and had about the same headroom, but a _little_ less legroom, shall we say. When all was said and done, he was in the car, with the top of his head sort of brushing the headliner, and his knees hiked up. Pam kept squeaking from the back, "Eric, scoot the seat up! I need some room!" to which he replied in a growl, "I CAN'T!" and I kept giggling. Eventually Pam sort of laid across the back seat.

Eventually Eric had recovered enough from the ordeal to ask me where I was taking us for dinner. I replied, "I'm taking you where you take anyone important in Oklahoma City - Presidents, visiting dignitaries, actors. And they should have a really nice selection of bloods. They're all about killing things." Eric's eyebrow shot up. "I'm intrigued."

We crossed town and we crossed the river, and we got into a very distinct area of town. Pam sat up in the backseat. "Sookie, why do I smell… livestock?"

I giggled. "That's because we are now in Cow Town, Pam. Welcome!"

"Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me! You better not be taking me anywhere where I will get any kind of _dung_ on my shoes! They're Christian Louboutins!" she wailed. I started laughing out loud. After a minute, Eric joined me. "This should be good, lover, if for no other reason than to torture my child."

We pulled into a parking lot and painfully, on Eric's part at least, climbed out of the car. Pam gingerly made her way to the door. "See, Pam, no dung in sight. I wouldn't do that to you, you know I love shoes, too," I teased.

We walked up to a restaurant named Cattlemen's and went in. "Are you sure this is the right place, Sookie?" Pam asked, looking around, taking in the vinyl booths and murals of cattle rustlers on the walls.

"Yup. I have been assured that it has the best food in town, and it is where you take anybody important. See? I didn't make it up. There are pictures of both President Bush's on the wall, and a picture of John Wayne."

Eric started laughing his big laugh. "I think you were being a bit selective when mentioning those categories, lover. I can't really imagine any other Presidents or actors here."

"Well, nevertheless. Let's not judge it yet."

A waitress came by and seated us and in an impressive amount of time I had a salad and a bowl of the best beef vegetable soup I'd ever had in my life, and Eric and Pam both had wine glasses of Royalty Blended.

While we waited for my steak, the conversation was easy and comfortable. It turned, after a while, to the kitten.

"What do you think I should name it? Fluffy?" I giggled.

"I am not going around at night calling, 'Fluffy, here Fluffy' because you let the cat out. I am a 1,000-year-old Viking. I'd sooner de-fang myself."

"I like Compton," snickered Pam.

"I'm vetoing that too," Eric growled.

"Well we have to call it something," I said. "Eric, are you vetoing _all_ cute names?"

"Yes. Sorry, lover. I gave you a cute cuddly kitten instead of getting you a pit bull, but I just can't go around saying I snuggled with Snookums the cat."

"Why not? You want to marry a human named Sookie. You could call her Sookums," giggled Pam.

"Pamela." Eric warned.

"Oh hush, Eric. I kinda like Sookums. No offense, but it beats 'lover.' Who know how many people you've called lover over the centuries!"

"I have never called anyone else lover!" Eric was getting incensed.

"Okay, okay, lover it is. But getting back to the cat. We can't just call it cat. That's like calling me 'lover."" Pam and I both laughed. Eric sighed.

"Ok, what about Fang? Is that tough enough for you, Vampire?" I teased.

"Fang. Fang the cat. It could work. I could teach it to hunt! It could be a sleek, strong hunting machine!" Eric was clearly getting intrigued by the idea.

"You are not taking my baby outside where it could get hurt! Or eat all kinds of things that could make it sick!" I was appalled.

"What is it with humans? I, a vampire, will only feed from you and a bottle. The cat, which for several millennia has been a hunter and predator, will eat from a bowl and stay inside and play with plastic mice to amuse itself."

"Those are the rules, buddy. You want to be with me, take it or leave it."

He sighed again, then grinned. "I take it."

Pam muttered something under her breath about his balls being in my purse. Luckily, my steak arrived to divert any potential dinner table vampire maker-child warfare, and we continued on peacefully for a while.

Another thought occurred to me a bit later, though. "Eric, what about my job?"

"I was wondering when you would get around to bringing that up, lover. This may come as a shock to you, but I have no problem with your job. If you'd like to keep working, keep working. You may find it easier if you worked part time though, in the afternoons, if we are together all the time. Being with me all night may make it difficult for you to get up in the mornings and work all day. But as for your current job, Pam has told me that you work in a safe and secure facility, you seem to be happy and well treated, that you have security to walk you to your car if you work at night - although of course I'd prefer you be there when I rise. All of these are acceptable to me."

I turned to Pam. "When did you discover all this?"

"The night after I got here. I had a cab take me to your work and I had a look around. I asked around about you, very discreetly, of course, and you seemed to be very highly thought of. Then I glamoured them so they wouldn't mention it to you." Pam seemed quite proud of herself.

"Pam! You can't just go around glamouring my co-workers!"

"Well I couldn't very well have them alert you to my presence yet, either. A lot of work went into my master plan, Sookie. I couldn't have it _spoiled_."

I gritted my teeth. High handed vampires!

"You know, lover, I am thinking of opening a business here. You might wish to work with me. I would love that, if we worked together. There is no one I trust as much as you, other than Pam, and you have incredible ideas – we would make fantastic partners if we were to go into business together. You could keep your other job for a while, just try working with me, see how you like it. No pressure."

"No pressure? Who are you and what have you done with Eric?" I laughed.

"I am making an effort to be 'low handed.' How am I doing?" He smiled.

"So far, pretty good. But we'll see how long it lasts. It's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. And let's face it, you are a _very_ old dog!" I poked him in the ribs.

"Fair enough, lover, fair enough." He put an arm comfortably around my shoulders as he paid the bill and we went back out to the parking lot and began the process again of folding him into my car.

When we got back to my townhouse, there was a surprise waiting there for Pam. A brand new, shiny black BMW SUV was parked in front of my place. After squirming out of my backseat, Pam actually hopped up and down in her Louboutins.

"Oh, Eric, thank you! It's perfect!" She squealed like the spoiled little girl she once was.

"You are very welcome, Pamela. Now, not to be rude, but I've made you a reservation at the vampire safe hotel you stayed at previously. Please pack your things and be gone!" he laughed. With vampire speed, she shot inside and had her things thrown into her suitcases, suitcases thrown into the back of the SUV and with a quick kiss on my cheek and a nod to Eric had the SUV tires squealing out of the parking lot.

Standing in my living room, Eric wrapped his arms around my waist and smiled down at me. "Shall we?"

"We shall."

In an instant, I was picked up, tucked against his chest and carried up the stairs.

_A/N: No! I did not just stop it here! Yes, I soooo did! But at least I got Eric and Sookie together and a lot of things resolved in this chapter, AND it was longer. I can't give you EVERYTHING at once, you wouldn't keep reading!! I promise, lemons next chapter!_


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: So, so sorry about the wonky chapter last night. I'm switching between a Mac and a PC and the PC is, of course, messing everything up, as per usual. So I'm fixing the chapter on my Mac today. Go Mac! Anyway, I'm reverting back to my tried and true methods to get this to you guys. **

A/N: I wrote this chapter and the following two epilogues in pieces, as they came to me. Most of what I write actually comes to me as I lie waiting to fall asleep - chronic insomnia. Then I put it down when I have time. These three all seemed to come to me pretty quickly; at least parts of them did. The lemons in Chapter 14 took a bit to come to me, I enjoy reading them, of course, but have a hard time writing them! Strangely enough, I did quite well until I tried to make it lovey-dovey, then I got totally STUCK for over a week with complete writer's block. The lemons in the Epilogues came to me first though, so I got them down first. And now, the much requested, and much thought out, lemons! (Please don't stone me for the delay)

* * *

Eric had me up the stairs and bouncing down onto the bed faster than I could blink. He glanced around the room for a moment then focused back on his task at hand. He started to undress at his usual lightning fast speed, but it had been too long since I had seen his glorious body and I wanted to savor it. I reached out and stopped him.

"No... let me." He gave me a mischevious grin and put his hands behind his head, signaling his submission.

I rose off the bed and began to slowly unbutton his silk shirt, letting my tongue follow along the path of flesh I was creating. When I reached where his shirt was tucked in to his trousers, I tugged it out and made quick work of the remaining buttons, throwing it off his broad shoulders. I let my nails scrape across his collarbone and down his arms as my tongue sought out his nipple. He hissed when it made contact. He threw his head back and moaned when my teeth tugged on the taught little bud of flesh.

My hands moved from his wrists to his waistband as I unbuttoned his pants and slid down his zipper. Sliding my fingers inside, I discovered that my hunch was correct; he had indeed gone commando. Some things never change and Eric Northman was nothing if not an opportunist. I grabbed the fabric hanging from his slim hips and yanked downwards, all the while sliding my tongue south down his firm stomach.

He moaned as my fingers found him and then again as the cool air hit him suddenly. "Ungh, woman... what are you doing to-... uhhhh..."

I silenced him as I sat back on the bed and led him by the hips to my mouth. He was so tall, he was actually the perfect height for this. I had so missed this, feeling him like this - so silky and smooth, yet hard underneath and pulsing with life. It was probably the only time I ever had Eric Northman completely at my mercy, and even then I knew it was because he allowed it, trusted me. I worked him with my tongue, loving the taste of him, gripping his shaft with my hands. Eric began thrusting into my mouth and I grinned, bracing myself.

Suddenly I was flat on my back in the center of the bed and my clothes were ripped off me, my dress, bra and panties in shreds in the corner of the room, and Eric was above me, attacking my breasts with abandon.

He was straining to speak between sucks, kisses and licks. "Time... for slow... is... over. Not... going... to have... our reunion... be down... your throat. Have... to taste... you. Missed... your taste... so much!" And he dove between my legs like a fury.

He was everywhere. Hands, tongue, fangs, nipping and licking and sucking and tasting, teasing and tormenting. To say I was stunned was an understatement. I'd never heard Eric talk like that, and to say it was a huge turn on was also an understatement. In what seemed like mere moments I was coming in tsunami-like waves. I had barely begun to come down from my high when Eric turned his head to my thigh and sank his fangs in, and I was off again. I vaguely registered him moaning, sucking deeply, more so than he usually did, but it just drew my bliss out that much longer.

Suddenly, Eric disengaged his fangs, licking the wound, and was back between my legs, lapping up my juices. Then he threw my already jello-like legs around his hips and drove himself into with the force that, if I wasn't in such a relaxed state, might have actually broken my pelvis. He began thrusting hard and fast, leaning up over me and holding my face against his chest.

"Ungh... lover... missed your taste so much... I've been starved for you for months... nothing tastes like you, nothing... not even Royalty tastes like you, lover... haven't been with anyone since the last time with you... don't want anyone but you... my Sookie... unhhhh... so good... mine..." He shifted and wrapped his arms around me tightly. I began to start getting a feeling coming from him, just as he began to speak with each thrust.

"Missed you... missed you... missed you... missed you..."

I pulled back a bit and caught his eye. "Eric." For once, he looked away, breaking the gaze so his hair fell forward and covered his face. "Eric, I know you feel it. I can _feel_ you feel it. But I need to hear the words."

He actually broke his rhythm and faltered, stilling inside me. "Sookie, it's difficult for me. I've never... I've never said it."

"I know, baby. But... you trust me with your life. Why can't you trust me with your heart?" I reached and held his hair back away from his face, and hooked a finger under his chin and tugged it in my direction, urging him to look at me. "Look at me, lover." He finally met my gaze and I winked. "You've never backed away from anything in your entire existence. Are you going to fear three little words?"

He finally met my eyes. "Jag alskar dig, min alskarinna. I love you, my Sookie." I felt like a million tiny pieces of me broke apart – all the old hurts I had been carrying my whole life, all the way back to when my parents died. All my old armor shattered when the mighty Viking finally uttered those three magic words to me, a mere human. If Eric, who had lived so long and seen so much, could make himself vulnerable to love and to me, and could change his whole life for me, then I owed it to myself, and to him, to let go of the past and all my baggage and do the same. Be myself, vulnerable, and real. So I took a deep breath.

"I love you too, Eric."

The smile that crossed his face was one I'd never seen before: pure, unadulterated joy. He bent down, took my face between his large hands, and kissed me sweetly on the lips. He began to move in and out of me again, but it was entirely different from any other time we had been together. Whereas before it had been thrusting, this was a smooth, fluid sliding. His hands slid over my legs smoothly, caressing. My hands, which before had clutched and dug into his arms and back, began to stroke over him lightly, lovingly. It felt like our bodies were fused, joined, melded as one. We climbed and climbed, soaring seemingly ever higher, until we reached a glorious crescendo, wrapped in each other's arms.

That night, in my regular sized bed with my oversized vampire, in my townhouse in my new city, I fell asleep. Wrapped around me were arms that had slain enemies, held babies, buried a wife, seen centuries. But tomorrow, for the first time, I would wake up and he would still be there, holding me. And we would start over. Together.

* * *

A/N: This is the end of the story, per se. But, we'll see a bit of how things turn out, from Sookie and Eric's perspectives. Look for two Epilogues, coming soon!


	15. Epilogue Sookie

Well, if you were thinking that the telepath and the Viking lived happily ever after with no bumps in the road, you'd be dead wrong. Har har, I know. I mean, anyone who knows either me or Eric knew there were bound to be some butting of heads. And there have been, big time. I think it took about three days of tripping over his bags before we mutually agreed that starting on our new house should be our first order of business, _post haste_. And I picked up his damp towels I don't know how many times before

I got fed up and decided a new approach was needed. One damp towel smacking him in the face was all it took for Eric to realize that I do not take kindly to towels left in the floor. Never let it be said that he is not a smart man.

So yes, there have been some learning curves, but we've worked them out. And for the most part, we've worked them out laughing. (Well, I laughed at the look on his face when the towel fell off...) And now, here we are, almost a year later, living in our beautiful "farmhouse" and about to open a club together.

It took about 2.5 days for us to realize that Eric HAD to have something to do. And by that, I mean something besides drive the contractor for our house crazy. I had taken Eric's advice and switched to working part time, just in the afternoons, because let's face it - if you had the Gracious Plenty waiting at home for you, wouldn't you want to be there to enjoy it, too? After we started construction on our house, though, it seemed like I spent most of my shifts at work on the phone with our construction foreman, trying to convince him either not to quit or not to stake Eric. He was driving the poor man bonkers - calling constantly, or out at the site, trying to rush construction, double checking things, and generally making a 1,000 year-old nuisance of himself. I guess he didn't like sharing a closet with me, either.

So, clearly, a diversion was required. But, what kind? I was not about to have another Fangtasia on my hands, with fangbangers throwing themselves at Eric left and right. And, when we discussed it, it turned out he really wasn't that into the idea of "enthralling the vermin" any longer. Plus, Oklahoma didn't really have a large enough vampire population to support a club just for them. But seeing as vampires are rather limited when it comes to nightime-only occupations, a club still seemed the natural choice. So, we decided to take a look at available locations and see what came to mind.

We looked at the typical club locations in Bricktown, but nothing really spoke to either of us. We were strolling back to the white Vette (which I had gotten a vanity plate for that read "STEED" as a joke) when I saw the entrance to an old underground parking garage. I stopped and stared at it. The real estate agent started telling us how it was for sale, but couldn't be used as a garage any more because of zoning, yada yada, when Eric just held up a hand for her to be quiet. I looked at Eric and said, "The Lair." He grinned, turned to the real estate agent and said, "She's brilliant at thinking outside the box. We'll take it."

So, we're almost ready for opening weekend of The Lair. Eric has left the decorating to me, and I've had a blast. The old square pillars dotted throughout the place are wrapped in black satin and silver colored

chains, and the cement floor has been resurfaced until it shines. The bar is midnight blue marble shot with black, and there are mirrors everywhere. It's dark, but not too dark. It's a much classier vibe than Fangtasia, and is open to all supes and humans as well. And it has a dress code, too - no latex allowed, fangbangers!

The best part about it is that Eric and I will work from home. He has hired a manager who will deal with the day to day running of things, but the major things we will deal with out of our home office. Occasionally we will go in to the club, but he won't be as tied to it as he was to Fangtasia, since there won't be Sheriff's duties to perform out of there. Eric has made it known that either of us can make executive decisions about the club, and any decisions needed to be made during the day should be directed to me as his "day half," as he calls me fondly.

So our new life is busy, but instead of being pulled in different directions, we've made sure we're going the same way. And, I still have my job at the library for my hours of quiet sanity, just for me. I may not keep it much longer, especially after the club opens, because Eric has made sure that what we are building now is being built together - not him as the boss and me as the employee, but as partners.

Eric asked me once, if I was really trying to start a new life and not be found, why I didn't change my name? Get a new Social Security number? My answer was, I didn't want to change who I was, just the circumstances I found myself in, with everything spiraling out of control. Also, what average person knows how to do that and not leave a trail? This is real life, not a spy movie.

So, here I am, with the best of Louisiana (via Sweden and who knows where else along the way) asleep for the day in a house that he designed to look like my beloved Gran's house, only vampire safe and much more luxurious. We have three floors: On the top floor is our joint office, then the ground floor is what Eric calls the "human floor" - kitchen, living room, den, sitting room. All the furniture is oversized and overstuffed, to accomodate my super-sized Viking. One floor under ground is our master suite. In the backyard is a swimming pool, surrounded by a patio perfect for tanning. And we have an enormous plot of land, plenty of privacy, lots of trees. It's quiet and homey and perfect.

At the moment, it's almost dusk and our housekeeper should be heading home soon. We have strict rules that the house is ours alone after dark. No club employees and no "helpers" as I call our house help, allowed past dusk. I'm floating in the pool on an inflatable raft, waiting for Eric to wake and come find me. Should take him, oh, all of about 1.2 minutes.

I feel the hum in the back of my mind get sharper and I know he's awake.

The sun dips under the horizon...

One Mississippi... two Mississippi...

My hand lazily starts tugging on the strings of my bikini...

Ten Mississippi...

I kick my leg in the water, turning the raft...

Twenty Mississippi...

I get the bikini top off...

Thirty five Mississippi...

I start wriggling out of the bottoms...

Fifty Mississippi...

I hear the patio door slide...

There's a whoosh and a splash, and I'm off the raft and up against the side of the pool with Eric's mouth between my legs.I've been waiting for this for an hour now, so I'm already ready, and he finds my nub, swollen and sensitive, and immediately starts flicking with his tongue. I screamed out.

He starts sucking my clit, insistent and furious, and it doesn't take long before I'm coming, hard, against his mouth. It's so nice having a vampire/husband/whatever you want to call him who doesn't need to breathe, sometimes.

Before I can catch my breath, he's emerged from the water and slid into me in one smooth stroke, wrapping my legs around his hips and thrusting hard. I tangle my hands into his wet hair and moan as my back scrapes against the side of the pool. I can't ever get enough of this man. He nuzzles against my neck and whispers to me in his ancient tongue. Soon his thrusts are becoming more erratic, and I'm on the edge as well. He lifts me a little higher, so my breasts are out of the water, takes one nipple into his mouth, and bites. That little shock of pain mixed with pleasure sends me into ectasy and I seize around him, tightening and pulsing and bringing him over with me. He lets go of my nipple and lets out a roar.

It's so nice not to have neighbors.


	16. Epilogue Eric

_A/N: This pays a little homage to BonTempsBabys' "Addicted To Love" - she has the Queen of Oklahoma be a Native American woman called Wanda. And, since I decided to move Sookie and, subsequently, Eric to my home of Oklahoma, I decided to give a little love back to my girl (whose stories I'm addicted to!) and have Eric pay a little fealty to Queen Wanda. If you havent read her stories yet, I cant recommend them enough. I squee like a 13 yr-old at a Robsten sighting every time I get an update notice on her story. LOL One day I'll grow up and be her. _

A Year and a Half After Eric Moved to Oklahoma; Six Months After Sookies Epilogue

The last eighteen months had been among the happiest of my existence. Sookie and I were finally on the same page, in the same place both literally and figuratively. I never truly realized what a wide distance there was between Bon Temps and Shreveport, maybe not in miles, but certainly in giving my favorite telepath a place to run from me. But now, in the place where she had completely uprooted to run from me and everything else in her life, we were finally in sync and at peace.

I had carried through with everything I promised Sookie I would do to keep her safe. Within days of entering Oklahoma Territory, I went to swear fealty to Queen Wanda. I had chuckled a bit on the way there, thinking that, of all the places Sookie could have gone to escape me, she had truly gone to the one place where a telepath wasnt needed by vampires, and where Felipe could not touch her. My little danger magnet had finally fallen completely unawares into the safest place she could possibly be, save for by my side, of course.

I had known Wanda for several centuries, and knew her to be a fierce fighter with something of a poets spirit. She wasnt known for provoking violence, and would only fight if necessary, but when she did, call upon any dieties you believed in to save you. I also knew that, alone among vampire monarchs, she had no need of a telepaths services since she herself was a seer. She didn't necessarily hear thoughts, but she knew the future. She could know, for instance, if a human she employed would betray her, bring strife to her realm. I went with a light heart to swear my loyalty to her.

She lived, not in a palace as most vampire monarchs, obsessed with the trappings of wealth and comfort, but in a rather modest house on a reservation. I waited a short time, and then she arrived from the back of the house, with no pomp and ceremony, simply sitting across from me.

"It has been many years, Viking."

I knelt in front of her. "Yes, it has, Your Majesty. I am here to request permission to live in your territory and to swear fealty to you. My sword is yours."

"Rise. I do not stand on ceremony here. You are here because of a woman, yes?"

I rose and sat back in my chair, preparing my next words carefully. This was the hard part it was one thing to open my heart to Sookie, but it was another to do so to another vampire. But I was resolved, I would do whatever it took to keep her safe. "Yes. A human woman. I am quite attached to her. In fact, I love her. She chose to leave Louisiana in large part due to the vampire politics I was involved in. I gave up my position as Sheriff, resigned to Felipe. She is...quite valuable to most vampires. She is a telepath."

Wanda smiled. "She is not merely human. And you wish for a similar position here?"

"No, Your Majesty. I simply wish to live out her mortal life with her. I have made a written contract with Felipe, that he will leave us in peace if I would not seek out a position of authority in another kingdom. I may wish to open a business here, but we have not discussed it yet, settled on specifics. I will, of course, seek permission from you first. However, as I said, should you need me to fight for you, my sword is yours."

"I trust I will not need it, but I thank you all the same. You have my permission to live here, and to open a business."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. One more question, if I may what is the state of the law allowing vampire/human marriages here, and whom do I speak to about advancing it?"

She merely smiled, opened a drawer and handed me a list of names and numbers. I thanked her again and turned to leave.

"I see peace and great happiness here for you with your telepath, Viking. Be content and satisfied with what you have found, seek simply to enjoy your nights, and you will know true love."

~*~*~*~*~*~

A year and a half after my conversation with Queen Wanda, and her prophecy was coming true. Sookie and I had opened "The Lair" to great fanfare and it was a smash success. In a market where most clubs came and went every three months, ours seemed to go from strength to strength. The law on vampire/human marriages was close to being passed (in no small part due to my endless lobbying with politicians and heavy campaign donations) and the day it did, Sookie would become my wife in legal terms, officially. For the first time perhaps since I was turned, I have a true home. I do not miss the crazier nights of my existence, fighting or at Fangtasia. Our farmhouse is filled with love and it is the new center of my universe.

My favorite room in our new home is our office. It's decorated in blue, dark red and pale yellow - an odd mix, I know, but the colors represent Sookie and I and it somehow works, just as we do. The office takes up the entire floor, and one half is mine (the dark red) and the other is Sookie's (the pale yellow) with the blue being the "uniting color" as she calls it. She informed me that the color she chose was called "Napoleon blue"; I had to laugh as I thought of the tiny little French Emperor who would've only come up to my chest. I caught a glimpse of his Empress Josephine in a salon in Paris once - a bit too thin and stiff necked for my taste, but still lovely for all that.

In the center of the room lies a soft Persian rug that ties together all the colors and a small round table where we throw all the mail. The room is dominated by windows - my dear one does love her sun, and she is in here during the day at times. The windows have metal blinds that can be controlled by remote down in our suite, in case I rise before sunset and wish to do some work. The door can be controlled from our suite as well. I had the builders put a security camera in so that I could insure no humans would be accidentally hit with the slamming door should I choose to shut with the remote - Sookie's idea, of course.

On Sookie's half of the room are the hodgepodge of tables and old cabinets she prefers to a traditional desk. Somehow she's worked out a filing system that makes perfect sense to her; it drives my accountant crazy but he knows better than to comment on it. I make sure there are always fresh flowers on her desk from our gardens and Pam usually sends her some as well. Compton sends her arrangements occasionally also, much to my annoyance, with notes giving her the news from Bon Temps. Little pest. She also gets letters from the shifter, which I wish I could make her leave in the kitchen so as not to smell up our joint office, and her brother calls occasionally. He is still up to his usual tricks with the ladies. Sookie asked me recently, after one of her brothers calls, if I missed my own womanizing ways, but I told her I only womanized as a way to pass the endless time, and of course to fill necessary nutritional requirements. No, I dont miss those ways at all what I have now is much more fulfilling. There is something to be said for learning someones ins and outs as well as your own, and yet still have them be able to surprise you.

On my side of the room is an enormous desk, specially made to be tall enough for me and as heavy as I could have carpenters construct it. In fact, it's made of two halves that were brought up separately and then joined once inside. I love this room for two reasons: one is that this is the base of operations for The Lair, and so it is where Sookie and I spend the majority of our time, when not in our suite, which means I can spend a great deal of time staring at my beautiful bonded until she scolds me like a schoolboy to get back to work; and the other is this desk.

I have not survived to be this age without being devious. Sookie thought I was having this desk designed simply because of my height, which is true, but it's weight was chosen to make it too heavy to shift across the floor - even, say, by a vampire in the throes of passion. I never (yet, anyway) got to fulfill my fantasy of taking Sookie on my desk at Fangtasia, which is still there; Pam still works out of her office for now, and Compton has moved the base of Area 5 to his home in Bon Temps. I'm hoping I can talk Sookie into fulfilling that little dream of mine when we go back to Shreveport soon to retrieve my swords and a few other valuables Pam is safekeeping.

I have, however, introduced my Dear One into the joys of Silent Sex. Sookie, as always, draws people to her, and so our home is seemingly always full of people. My initial rule of no one in the house after sunset didnt last long particularly after the club opened. By having our home be the base of operations for the club, we do have people in and out, visiting, needing things signed, etc.

The first time it happened, Sookie had arranged for a home away from home party for the weekend and invited all of our Louisiana friends and family. Pam, her brother, the shifter, the witch, even Compton had all descended upon our farmhouse. I felt I was being a very considerate mate, having a shifter, a were, a witch and Compton in my home for the weekend. I lured her up to the office with the false pretense of some club swatches that had been couriered over to me and needed her immediate attention. I simply had to have her, and now I needed to mark her with my scent yet again to show our guests that I may be very open in letting them visit, but she was still MINE.

My lover is Southern belle through and through, though, and I had to swear on my undead life to not make a peep. I was afraid she'd change her mind, so I had her out of her sundress and my head between her thighs so fast I think her pretty blonde head was spinning. I was so worked up just from her agreeing I knew I wouldn't be able to last long, so I just got her a little relaxed and then slowly slid into her.

The look on her face was something I will remember the rest of my existence. I could hear, in my head, so well the sound she usually made when I entered her, and her face matched it perfectly but silently. It was an incredible turn on. I sped up a bit, and saw her mouth my name. I began to thrust harder and faster, and was pleased, in the still rational corner of my brain, to see that the desk neither budged nor made one squeak. I love it when I get what I pay for. I quickly focused back on the task at hand and redoubled my efforts. I wrapped her legs around my waist when, fuck me, it happened.

Sookie grabbed my hands and gripped one leg under my ass and one across my back. All the sounds she usually made when she came, she channeled inside and it was like nothing I've ever seen or felt before. She literally came undone before me. Every muscle in her body quaked, trembled, shook and somehow clenched at the same time. Her mouth opened in a silent scream and her legs gripped me in a death lock. She plunged me deeper into her than I'd ever been, and slammed the front of my thighs into the desk. Her walls clenched me tighter than I'd ever felt and she literally ripped my orgasm right out of me. My own legs actually gave out from under me for a moment. Seeing her like that, feeling her pull me in, pushed me higher than I'd ever been - even on fairy blood - and I ground down, clenching my jaw together to keep from roaring.

I collapsed on top of her, completely out of my skull. When I finally came back to reality somewhat, I realized my weight was fully on her and tried to move but her legs were still locked around me in a death grip.

"No. Not yet," she whispered.

"Are you alright?" I whispered back.

"Yes. That was..."

"Incredible," I finished.

"We are _so_ doing _that_ again," she sighed, finally starting to relax the lock on my legs and hands.

"Lover, we can do _that_ any time you wish," I chuckled, extracting my fingers. "Its a good thing I'm not human, or else you might have cut off the blood to my fingers and legs."

She giggled. "My butt's numb."

"By all means, let me rub it for you," I offered.

She snorted. "You're such a gentleman."

"Anything to help a lady out," I agreed.

Since that night, there have been many such encounters on my desk and they have all been equally as mind blowing. In fact, a delightful shorthand has developed: 'I need you in the office' is a _double entendre_ for 'please come fuck my brains out on the desk.' I still can't put my finger on what it is about the woman that, after so many centuries and so many women, makes me never tire of her. Sookie has a term for it, though, that comes as close to it as any I can think of: soul mates.


End file.
